Comparing E-Readers | September 2011

When Amazon introduced the first Kindle four years ago, the e-reader market barely existed and e-books were almost a novelty. Sony e-readers were already on the scene but the Barnes & Noble Nook wasn’t even on the drawing board. This week, Amazon changed the e-reader game again with new dedicated e-readers that can be bought for under $100 and a media tablet that could do the same for that category if it delivers as promised.

There are too many e-readers to cover them all so we’re keeping it simple, comparing Amazon’s Kindle lineup with some of its main competitors, the Nook Simple Touch and Nook Color, Sony (NYSE: SNE) Reader Touch Edition and Kobo’s Touch. Although it’s a tablet, we included the Kindle Fire because of its e-reader origins and its new role at the head of the Kindle family. Check out our chart…

AVAILABILITY

Now

Available for pre-order for November 21, 2011 release; U.S. only

Now

Now

Available for pre-order for November 15 release, 2011; U.S. only

Now

Now

Now

Now

PRICING

With Special Offers: $79
Without Special Offers: $109

WiFi with Special Offers: $99
WiFi without Special Offers: $139
3G/WiFi with Special Offers: $149
3G/WiFi without Special Offers: $189

WiFi with Special Offers: $99
WiFi without Special Offers: $139
3G/WiFi with Special Offers: $139
3G/WiFi without Special Offers: $189

$379

$199

$139

$249

$229.99

$129.99

SIZE

6.5″ x 4.5″ x 0.34″

6.8″ x 4.7″ x 0.40″

7.5″ x 4.8″ x 0.34″

10.4″ x 7.2″ x 0.38″

7.5″ x 4.7″ x 0.45″

6.5″ x 5″ x 0.47″

8.1″ x 5.0″ x 0.48″

6.61″ x 4.68″ x 0.38″

6.5″ x 4.5″ x 0.4″

WEIGHT

5.98 ounces

WiFi: 7.5 ounces
3G/WiFi: 7.8 ounces

WiFi: 8.5 ounces
3G/WiFi: 8.7 ounces

18.9 ounces

14.6 ounces

7.48 ounces

15.8 ounces

7.58 ounces

7.05 ounces

SCREEN SIZE

6″ (diagonal)

6″ (diagonal)

6″ (diagonal)

9.7″ (diagonal)

7″

6″ (diagonal)

7″

6″ (diagonal)

6″ (diagonal)

DISPLAY

E Ink Pearl

E Ink Pearl

E Ink Pearl

E Ink Pearl

Vibrant Color IPS

E Ink Pearl

VividView Color Touchscreen

E Ink Pearl

E Ink Pearl

TOUCHSCREEN/ROTATE

No/Yes

Yes/Yes

No/Yes

No/Yes

Yes

Yes/No

Yes/Yes

Yes/No

Yes/No

BATTERY LIFE

1 month

2 months

2 months

3G off, 30 min. reading/day: 3 weeks
3G on: 10 days

Up to 8 hours of continuous reading or 7.5 hours of video playback, with WiFi off.

WiFi off: 2 months

WiFi off: 8 hours

2 weeks

1 month

STORAGE/EXPANDABLE

2 GB/No/Free unlimited cloud storage for Amazon content

4 GB/No/Free unlimited cloud storage for Amazon content

4 GB/No/Free unlimited cloud storage for Amazon content

4 GB/No/Free unlimited cloud storage for Amazon content

8 GB/No/Free unlimited cloud storage for Amazon content

2 GB/Up to 32 GB (microSD)

8 GB/Up to 32 GB (microSD)

2 GB/Up to 32 GB (microSD)

2 GB/Up to 32 GB (microSD)

INPUT

Five-way controller

Touchscreen

Keyboard

Keyboard

Touchscreen

Touchscreen

Touchscreen

Touchscreen; buttons

Touchscreen

3G/WIRELESS

WiFi

3G through AT&T/WiFi-only option

3G through AT&T/WiFi-only option

3G through AT&T

WiFi

WiFi

WiFi

WiFi

WiFi

INTERNATIONAL

Yes

No

Yes

Yes

No

No

No

Currently available in 8 countries and rolling out to Asia soon

Currently available in 5 languages; international bookstore; available in Canada and UK; will roll out more international devices soon